Samatha Trust

Samatha Trust is a British charitable organization founded in 1973 to support the teaching of samatha meditation, a form of Buddhist mental cultivation emphasizing calm and concentration. The Trust was co-founded by Thai meditation teacher Nai Boonman Poonyathiro and British scholar L. S. Cousins, and has contributed to the transmission and development of Theravāda-based meditation in the United Kingdom.^[1]

The meditation system taught by the Samatha Trust traces its roots to traditional forms of Buddhist practice found in Thailand prior to the 20th-century monastic reforms. These practices were associated with the borān kammaṭṭhāna (“ancient meditation methods”) lineage, a form of esoteric Theravāda meditation that utilized techniques such as visualization, breath control, and mantra recitation.^[2]

According to scholars such as Kate Crosby, these esoteric traditions declined due to a combination of ecclesiastical reforms in Thailand and political factors in countries like Cambodia and Laos. In those regions, colonial influence and later regimes such as the Khmer Rouge disrupted local meditation lineages.^[3]

In 1963, Nai Boonman Poonyathiro, a former monk trained in Thai meditation methods, began teaching samatha meditation in the United Kingdom. One of his earliest students was L. S. Cousins, who later played a key role in developing the organizational and educational structure of the Samatha Trust. Cousins was instrumental in founding samatha meditation classes in several UK universities, beginning with Cambridge University, where he helped establish both a Buddhist society and a samatha class.^[4] When he moved to Manchester in 1967, he founded the Manchester University Buddhist Society and a related samatha class, which later contributed to the establishment of the Manchester Centre for Buddhist Meditation in Chorlton.^[5][6]

Cousins also helped organize retreats and classes across the UK and internationally, including in Ireland, the United States, and Sri Lanka, where he remained an influential teacher for several decades.^[7] The Samatha Trust was formally established in 1973 to provide institutional support for these teaching efforts.

The Trust teaches a system of meditation that draws on pre-reform Theravāda methods from Thailand. The practice begins with attention to the breath, often supported by mantra repetition, and may include visualization exercises. These techniques are generally taught in a progressive sequence, with practitioners encouraged to maintain regular practice and participate in retreats.^[8]

Over the course of the 20th century, Samatha meditation has been gradually replaced by the New Burmese Method of vipassana meditation which focuses on clearing the mind, rather than calming it.^[9]

Instruction is provided primarily by trained lay teachers. While the methods are rooted in the Thai Buddhist tradition, they have been adapted for Western contexts, emphasizing accessibility for lay practitioners.^[10]

The activities and evolution of the Samatha Trust have been examined in academic literature on Buddhism in the West. In her 2019 article, scholar Sarah Shaw describes the organization as an example of the adaptation of traditional Buddhist practices to modern lay contexts. She notes its distinctive combination of lineage fidelity and methodological flexibility.^[11]

The Trust operates as a Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO) in the United Kingdom.^[12] It maintains a network of local teaching groups and retreat centres, and continues to train new instructors in the meditation system it upholds. It also engages in collaborations with scholars and Buddhist institutions focused on the study and practice of Theravāda meditation traditions.^[13]

• Theravāda
• Samatha
• Vipassanā
• Esoteric Buddhism
• Buddhist meditation

• Official website
• Samatha Trust Library
• Itipiso.org
• PaliChanting.org
• Online Samatha Meditation Course
• Samatha Buddhist Meditation Youtube
• Okasa Itipiso Channel